Protect Each Other
by TheForceWeilder413
Summary: Two days before the imfamous Knightfall, two sixteen year old Padawans must escort a Senator to Alderaan, all the while trying to figure themselves out. And when a mysterious man comes from the future, their lives will be forever changed. All they have is each other.


**Hey, Ken Tarrak back for more Star Wars. This I wrote about a week ago, but never had the opportunity to post it ever. So now I'm taking a little advantage of ForceWeilder413's profile.**

**I've always been the type of guy that likes action and adventure and stuff, but a little romance wouldn't hurt, you know?**

**I created this with the OC Ken Tarrak in it, but its another universe. AU, it will transpire over the lull of 66, through 66, and finally to the end of the Imperial Reign. A lot right? I'll do it. **

**REVIEW**

**Disclaimer: I do not have the great privilege to own the best movie, cartoon, toy, game, ect. Series ever**

* * *

_Chapter 1: Flight There_

_If you don't let people in, who will help you?_

A fifteen year old Jedi Padawan sat in his seat as the ship lifted into hyperspace. He glanced at the pilot who had just come through the access door. He was a middle aged man with a black beard that was starting to gray in some areas. He stood proud and tall as he spoke, his voice deep, "We'll be at Alderaan in eight standard hours"

The Jedi Knight turned his head out the small viewport to his left. He watched as Coruscant disappeared, the Temple disappearing with it. He had his mission.

He looked over to his right and saw Senator Ralph Dorish. He was the Senator of Bellassa. He had a meeting with Bail Organa on Alderaan. But, because of the increasing attacks of the Separatists, the Council assigned him to escort Ralph safely. An easy job no doubt, but a boring one at that. He'd always be one for adventure, not escorts.

_What I wouldn't give to be on the front lines,_ He mused, _But, Obi Wan and Anakin probably have everything at Coruscant. I've got to hand it to them; they are the best team in the galaxy._ He gave a chuckle to himself, _I dare say better than my team._ His gaze went to his lightsaber. He slowly fingered the saber. The saber he made when he was thirteen. The saber he used against Darth Zekk.

His hand went immediately to his right arm. He quickly shook those thoughts away as he leaned back in his chair. The mission was to escort Ralph to Alderaan. The Council never said anything about not relaxing as he did so. A strand of his dark brown hair fell into his view. He frowned and blew it back up top.

"Hair trouble?" He heard a voice say beside him.

He turned his head to see his friend, Caprice, taking a seat next to him. She was dressed in her usual attire. She had on a light colored tunic with a red undershirt that could be seen. Her leggings were brown and they matched her boots. She flicked a piece of brown hair out of her face as she spoke to him.

He sighed deeply, "No, more like being bored out of my mind"

Caprice shrugged, "It could be worse"

"How?" He challenged.

She smirked, "You could be at the Temple, in the library, doing nothing but studying your huge flaws"

This made him sit up straight, "I don't have huge flaws!"

Caprice just gave a laugh, "Oh yeah, last week you almost blew yourself up when you tried to fix the engine's cooling tanks!"

His face started to heat up with embarrassment. Only she could make him this mad. And that made _him_ mad. The fact that only she could get him this riled up made him start to wonder why. Though, that wasn't the mission. Still, he had his pride.

"It was an accident, I was just trying to do the ship a favor" He protested.

Caprice laughed harder, "By taking us all down with it. No thanks, I prefer to be a _living_ Jedi, not a dead one. Anyways, I came over here to see how you were doing"

He shrugged, "I told you, I'm freaking bored. Escorting Senators is not what I like to do for fun. Now taking on some droids, maybe a Dark Jedi, now that's fun"

"Master Yoda says that a Jedi does not crave excitement" Caprice said, "He says it can try to pull your attention to itself, drawing you into stupid and dangerous situations"

He nodded. Master Yoda did say that. But, even though he had good reason, it still would be pretty boring if there wasn't _any _excitement as a Jedi. It would be a very boring life if you thought about it. He shivered slightly as he thought about being cooped up in the Library. He hated that place. The only time he ever went there was to find out stuff for his master.

He laughed inwardly. _And even Master Secura detests that place._

"Yeah, but the more stupid, the more fun, right?" He gave a cheeky smile. In response, she merely smirked, "Only for you"

"What's that supposed to mean, huh? I'm stupid" He said with a mock glare.

His best friend gave an innocent smile, "Maybe"

"Well then" He pouted and turned his face away with his arms crossed. A second later he felt a sharp pain in his arm. He looked back, a shocked expression over his face, "Did you punch me?"

Caprice threw her hands up, "What was I supposed to do, Ken, let you pout the whole time?!"

Ken frowned, "Sometimes you can be so annoying"

"Well at least I don't have a habit of not only destroying things, but also having bad luck!"

"At least I'm not always late to missions!"

"At least I'm not such a show off!"

"At least I don't take a million years to get ready!"

Caprice smirked at him, "It takes time to look this good"

"Good!" Ken scoffed, "You think you look good? You look like the rear end of a Bantha!"

Caprice's face turned beat red. She was about to retaliate when she noticed the looks they were getting. Ken noticed this too, but he just chuckled to himself. The fact that they were all staring at her was the funniest.

Caprice leant towards him and whispered fiercely, "You take that back!"

Ken gave her a wide grin, "Nope"

Caprice's eyes narrowed into slits and she glared at him, "You'd better take that back, Ken"

Even though she was mad, she was also hurt. She and Ken joked around with each other a lot, but this was a little hurtful. Did she really look bad? And, even though she would never admit it, she tried to look good for _him._ The fact was almost nerve-racking. She had a crush on her best friend.

She felt her heart thump in her ears as he just smiled back. She felt her cheeks go warm, but turned away promptly. She sat back in her chair and flocked another piece of hair out her face.

"Okay, okay" Ken laughed quietly, "I take it back, you don't look like a Bantha"

Refusing to let her soft side show, she merely gave a nod, "Thank you"

Ken's smile widened, "Your welcome, milady"

Again she felt her face heat up and she promptly turned away from him, _Darn you Ken. Why do you keep making feel like this. I DO NOT LIKE KEN!…okay that's a lie. I do like him. He's sweet and thoughtful and cute… _Her mind trailed off there as her face warmed further.

A few minutes later, a Twilek waitress came down the hall with a cart of refreshments. The cart eventually came to them and Ken saw that the waitress was about their age if not a little older. She turned to Caprice, "Anything, miss?"

Caprice nodded, "Water please"

Ken bent over and looked at the name tag: Angela. After the glass with water was handed to his best friend, the waitress looked over to him. At first, she looked at him with eyes slightly wide, as if she was focusing on something. Her face suddenly broke into a warming smile, "Can I get you something too, handsome?"

Caprice's head whipped around to Ken, whose face had turned crimson. Ken smiled and nodded, "Yeah, non-alcoholic Jawa juice, please"

The Twilek blushed a little as she nodded. She reached down and grabbed the bottle, pouring it into a glass cup. With an ever growing smile, she gave the drink to Ken. He nodded his head, "Thanks, miss"

The Twilek blinked her long eyelashes at him, "Just call me Angela"

This caught him off guard and he stuttered a response, "O-Okay, Angela"

Angela nodded and winked at him before leaving. Caprice was fuming at her. How dare that girl flirt with him! She looked back at Ken and was shocked to see him just sipping his drink leisurely. It was as if nothing had happened!

Ken continued sipping his drink when he suddenly felt like he was being watched. He cautiously looked over and saw Caprice looking at him. Her eyebrows furrowed and her eyes lit with anger. He looked down and saw that her fists were clenched too.

He set his drink down slowly, "Uh, did I do something wrong, C?"

Caprice nodded fiercely. _You know what you DIDN'T do you freaking, blind buffoon!"_

"Can you tell me?" He sheepishly smiled.

She was about to right him off when she realized that he didn't mean anything. She shook her head, "Never mind"

* * *

Within an hour, all the passengers aboard the ship were asleep, everyone except Caprice. For some odd reason, sleep had eluded her recently. She hadn't been getting much sleep in about two weeks. Maybe it was her thoughts about Ken, or maybe it was this nagging feeling that something wasn't right.

She'd always had a knack for that kind of thing. She'd get a bad feeling and it would come to pass, almost like telling the future. Now she just gazed softly at his sleeping form. His body was curled up into a ball, as if he was cold. His breathing was slow and steady as he seemed to be deep asleep.

She looked at the ear phone in his ear, still playing the same tune over and over again. But that still didn't bother his quiet form. Very carefully, she pulled the two ear phones out and placed them in her own ears.

_I'm at war with the world and they_

_Try to pull me into the dark_

_I struggle to find my faith_

_As I'm slippin' from your arms_

The tune was great. There was some violin in there, and she like violin. The voice switched and a girl started singing. They seemed to switch off a little.

_It's getting harder to stay awake_

_And my strength is fading fast_

_You breathe into me at last_

_I'm Awake_

_I'm Alive_

_Now I know what I believe inside_

_Now it's my time_

_I'll do what I want_

_Cause' this is my life_

_Right here, right now_

_Stand my ground and never back down_

_I know what I believe inside_

_I'm Awake and I'm Alive_

She smiled a little as there was a music settle and let the song go on.

_I'm at war with the world cause' I_

_Ain't ever gonna sell my soul_

_I've already made up my mind_

_No matter what I can't be bought or sold_

_When my faith is getting weak_

_And I feel like givin' in_

_You breathe into me again_

_I'm Awake_

_I'm Alive_

_Now I know what I believe inside_

_Now its my time_

_I'll do what I want_

_Cause this is my life_

_Right here, right now_

_Stand my ground and never back down_

_I know what I believe inside_

_I'm Awake and I'm Alive_

_Waking up, waking up! _

_Waking up, waking up!_

_Waking up, waking up!_

_Waking up, waking up!_

_In the dark_

_I can feel you in my sleep_

_In your arms I feel you breathe into me_

_Forever hold this heart that I will give to you_

_Forever I will live for you_

_I'm Awake_

_I'm Alive_

_Now I know what I believe inside_

_Now its my time_

_I'll do what I want_

_Cause this is my life_

_Right here, right now_

_Stand my ground and never back down_

_I'm Awake and I'm Alive_

_Waking up, waking up! _

_Waking up, waking up!_

_Waking up, waking up!_

_Waking up, waking up!_

Caprice took the ear phones out and put them back into his ears. The song was great, but she had to put them back before he woke up. On her retreat, she accidentally brushed his cheek.

She instantly felt the warmth on it. She didn't dare move as his body shuffled. Suddenly, she was pulled as his arms wrapped around her waist. Her cheeks were set ablaze. She could always move him…but she wasn't going too. As the song said, right here, right now, he was hers.

She relaxed into his embrace and let out a soft sigh of pure delight. It was as if she was having a dream. Her crush was holding her in his arms as they slept. She could feel his warm breath on her face. His short, dark brown hair, tickling her ear, it was unreal. This was a dream come true.

In his arms, she was finally starting to feel relaxed. Before she knew it, her eyes started to droop. The feeling of safety was starting to take effect. She finally let her eyes close and she fell into a deep, peaceful slumber.

* * *

Two hours later, Ken awoke from his slumber. His vision was blurry. He yawned and blinked until full vision came back. He did NOT expect his best friend to be sleeping in his arms. His body was stretched the length of the two seats and his feet hung slightly off the edge. Caprice, however, was lying in the small space between the chair and him. His eyes widened when he saw his arms around her waist.

Did he do this when he slept? That would have to be the only explanation. He'd never try this if he was awake.

Only then did he realize a song in his ear. It was "Awake and Alive" by Skillet. He enjoyed their band and had a bunch of their songs. He shook his head and the earphones fell onto the seat.

He turned back to Caprice and smiled. She looked so peaceful when she was asleep. And he couldn't deny the fact that he like the position he was in. Though, he knew that if she ever found out about this, she'd be unexplainably angry.

He tried to get into a sitting position but found it impossible. His movements must have stirred Caprice, because she raised her head with eyes half open.

"Huh, Ken?" She mumbled.

His face flared at her disheveled state, "Yeah?"

Still half asleep, she mumbled, "Go back to bed"

He stared at her wide eyed, "D-Don't you think we should get up?"

Caprice gave a smile and snuggled closer, "No, you're too comfy"

"But…" He started.

Caprice put a finger up to his lips, "Shhhh…sleep now, worry later" She leaned up and kissed his cheek, "G'night, Kenny"

As she laid her head back on his chest, Ken suddenly felt woozy. He lay his head back and within seconds, fell asleep once again. No worries, as she said.

* * *

"All right, passengers please sit your seats up and put away any electronic devices, we're landing on Alderaan in six minutes." The pilot said.

The same Twilek waitress came down the aisle with her service cart. She glanced around at all the waking faces and sighed happily, her break was coming.

She kept her steady stride, until she came to Ken and Caprice. Both were sleeping still and both had smiles on their faces. Ken had his arms wrapped protectively around her waist. Caprice's head was laid on his chest, almost like a pillow.

Angela smiled slightly. She could tell the two were for each other. The test she did earlier proved that. Caprice was outraged and Ken was kind. That proved her theory. The two young Jedi were for each other.

She reached out and slightly shook Ken. He stirred for a moment before his sight returned.

"Angela?" He tilted his head.

She smiled warmly, "You gotta get up, darling, landing time in a moment" She cast a glance at his friend, "And you might want to wake up her too"

Angela left without another word.

Ken looked over at his sleeping companion and, finding his left hand free, gently brushed his fingers over her face while whispering, "Time to get up, C"

She woke up a few seconds later and a fierce blush spread over her cheeks. Her mouth hung slightly open and her eyes never left his. The silence hung slightly before the pilot made him known.

"Strap yourselves in folks, were starting our departure" His deep voice, however, was still not enough to make it break.

"K-Ken…" Her voice was small, something she rarely exhibited, "I…I…"

He gave a heartwarming grin; "I know" He leant down and kissed her warm cheek, reddening it further. The rose on her face turned into a fire. She looked at him in total shock, her mouth hanging farther.

Soon, they strapped up and sat in silence as the ship came down. Ken cast a glance at the Senator and saw him strapped tight. He turned back his attention to the ship as it rumbled slightly before going still. He suspected they'd broken through the atmosphere.

He decided to break the tension, "So, Kenny huh?"

The fire burned brighter as she stammered out a response, "Yeah, well, I was half asleep and you were so comfortable…No, that's not what I meant! I mean you were nice to lie on. No, that's not it either! Anyway, um, sorry about what happened before." The last part was whispered.

"No need to apologize. You kissed my cheek; I kissed yours, only fair right?" He smirked at her blushing face.

Caprice gave a sheepish grin, "I-I guess"

"Wow! The great Caprice Marlow blushing?! Gasp, I must get a photo" He teased and pulled out a small camera and snapped a pic. Caprice's face went from burning fire to burning star.

"Y-You're not going to keep that right?!" Her voice cracked and he chuckled.

"Why not, it's cute" He said, still grinning as big as ever.

She crossed her arms, "You're messing with me, aren't you?"

"Kinda" He shrugged.

"I have a question" Caprice said.

"Fire away" Ken rebounded.

Caprice fidgeted for a moment before speaking, "W-Why did you…you know…let me sleep on you?"

Ken pondered this for a moment, "About that, I think I did that in my sleep. I told myself that I'd never try that when I'm awake, so, it only stands to reason that I did it while I was sleeping. I woke up a little later and found you sleeping on me, but I didn't move you because, in a way, I liked it" He admitted with a blush covering his own cheeks.

Caprices eyes widened, _What?! Wait, if he's admitting this, can it really mean…_

Ken adjusted the lightsaber on his belt and stared into her warm, brown eyes, "Uh, we'd better go" He whispered as everybody got up from their seats. They followed the senator down the ramp and onto the landing pad. They immediately found their hover car and the Senator hopped shotgun.

Ken went for the driver's seat and took off down the marked lanes.

* * *

**Good right? Twielik testing! I Bet you didn't see that one coming, huh?**

**I have a second chapter, but I will only post it if I get about 10-15 reviews for this one. So please review.**

**Ken: (Smiles and holds his hand up in a half salute): "Until we meet again guys!"**


End file.
